Suchergebnisse

In the neoliberal paradigm, free cross-border capital flows are crucial for economic development. However, the liberalization of the financial sector and of cross-border capital flows has led to highly volatile financial flows and numerous financial crises. Cyclical capital inflows and capital outflows increase macroeconomic disequilibria and reduce the space for manoeuvre concerning economic policy making. According to historical trends, net resource outflows from developing countries are rather the norm than the exception. Since the Asian crisis, the net resource transfer from developing countries has increased considerably. This implies that financial flows from the global South permanently contribute to finance development in the North, in particular in the USA. These flows consist mainly of interest payments, profit repatriation and the hoarding of foreign currency reserves that are invested in US treasury bills. Against the background of highly volatile financial flows, heterodox strategies within and beyond the post-Washington consensus are attracting renewed attention. This paper provides an overview of global dynamics and transformations of international capital flows and the related consequences for developing countries. It is concluded that, since the implementation of a new global monetary and financial regime is not in sight, countries in the periphery are forced to develop individual strategies and to co-operate on a regional level to prevent bubbles and financial crisis in order to implement their state-led development strategies. Adapted from the source document.

Our goal in this project is to gain a better empirical understanding of the international financial implications of currency movements. To this end, we construct a database of international currency exposures for a large panel of countries over 1990-2004. We show that trade-weighted exchange rate indices are insufficient to understand the financial impact of currency movements. We show that our currency measure has high explanatory power for the valuation term in net foreign asset dynamics: exchange rate valuation shocks are sizable, not quickly reversed and may entail substantial wealth redistributions. Further, we demonstrate that many developing countries hold short foreign-currency positions, leaving them open to negative valuation effects when the domestic currency depreciates. However, we also show that many of these countries have substantially reduced their foreign currency exposure over the last decade. -- Financial integration ; capital flows ; external assets and liabilities

Explores control of international financial flows, impact of free capital flow on crises, new capital movements regulation, the Tobin tax proposal on currency transactions, challenges of globalized capital markets for developing countries, Al-Qaeda financing sources, and strategies to detect financing sources of Islamic terrorist organizations; 4 articles. Summaries in English p. 236-7.

Summarizes the existing knowledge about the financing of international (Islamic) terror organizations to develop strategies for fighting international terrorism beyond political & military means. First, some short remarks about the organization of Islamic terror organizations are made & their financing systems are described. Then, with the Al Qaida network as an example, different sources of financing are analyzed & the amount of existing financial means is estimated. Following a survey of measures recently taken in some major countries strategies are developed to detect & reduce the financial flows of international terror organizations. As countermeasures, among others, an efficient international task force applying criminal network analyses & efforts to remedy some weak points in the international banking system related to offshore centers & tax heavens are proposed. 2 Tables, 1 Figure. Adapted from the source document.

The paper analyses the transmission of global financial shocks to individual member states of the European Monetary Union (EMU), in which monetary policy is delegated to the ECB and financial markets are fully integrated. Using a panel VAR model, we show that the asymmetric effects of global shocks on member states are partly offset by the uniform access of commercial banks to the Eurosystem's open market operations in conjunction with the redistribution of liquidity via the TARGET mechanism. However, an appropriate policy mix of sound public finances, solid financial regulation and targeted macroprudential measures is necessary in order to safeguard macroeconomic sustainability without needing to manage capital flows.

"Public opinion has got the impression that developed societies are becoming more unequal. Empirical data from various sources show, that after becoming more equal for decades, in many societies the inequality of household incomes actually is on the rise since the 1970s. The contribution examines the reasons for this increase on the basis of theories of modernization and globalization. It can be shown by empirical data that the seemingly opposing theories of modernization and globalization only taken together can explain the more and more unequal national income distributions. The modernizing factors of rationalization and technological change cause increasing inequality - under given circumstances of educational and population structures and influenced by globalisation factors such as migration, trade and financial flows. May be the contemporary increase of social inequality will not continue forever. Modernization and globalization together once again can produce more equality, provided there will be different educational and demographic structures." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

"In der Öffentlichkeit besteht der Eindruck, dass entwickelte Gesellschaften in letzter Zeit ungleicher werden. Im Beitrag wird anhand empirischer Daten gezeigt, dass nach jahrzehntelanger Angleichung seit etwa den 1970er Jahren die Haushaltseinkommen vieler Gesellschaften in der Tat wieder ungleicher werden. Im Beitrag werden die Gründe dieser Verschärfung auf der Basis von Modernisierungs- und Globalisierungstheorien analysiert. Deren empirische Prüfung ergibt, dass die scheinbar gegensätzlichen Theorien nur im Zusammenwirken in der Lage sind, die ungleicher gewordenen nationalen Einkommensverteilungen zu erklären. Heute bewirken die Modernisierungsfaktoren Rationalisierung und technischer Wandel angesichts gegebener Randbedingungen von Bildung und Bevölkerung und beeinflusst durch die Globalisierungsprozesse Migration, Handel und Finanzströme eine wachsende Ungleichheit. Möglicherweise werden in Zukunft Modernisierung und Globalisierung zusammen wieder mehr Gleichheit hervorbringen, freilich nur bei veränderten Bildungs- und Bevölkerungsstrukturen." (Autorenreferat). Die Untersuchung enthält quantitative Daten. Die Untersuchung bezieht sich auf den Zeitraum 1900 bis 1992.;;;"Public opinion has got the impression that developed societies are becoming more unequal. Empirical data from various sources show, that after becoming more equal for decades, in many societies the inequality of household incomes actually is on the rise since the 1970s. The contribution examines the reasons for this increase on the basis of theories of modernization and globalization. It can be shown by empirical data that the seemingly opposing theories of modernization and globalization only taken together can explain the more and more unequal national income distributions. The modernizing factors of rationalization and technological change cause increasing inequality - under given circumstances of educational and population structures and influenced by globalisation factors such as migration, trade and financial flows. May be the contemporary increase of social inequality will not continue forever. Modernization and globalization together once again can produce more equality, provided there will be different educational and demographic structures." (author's abstract).

The financial crises of the 90s have underlined the need for a comprehensive re-regulation of international financial markets. Although a number of measures addressing both the erratic developments of exchange rates and the volatility of capital flows could be implemented, it is unlikely that we will witness a substantial change of the current system, which produces instability and enormous opportunities for profits at the same time. The main obstacles for a re-regulation of the international financial markets are not of a technical nature, but are the results of vested interests in the USA, namely of the "Wall Street Treasury Complex" (Jagdish Bhagwati). (Prokla / FUB)

Argentina is one of the developing countries that most enthusiastically embraced the neoclassical model promoted by the Bretton Woods institutions. For years admired as one of the most successful emerging market economies, Argentina is now at the center of the most recent financial crises that struck many developing countries during the late 20th century. Argentina's financial & currency crisis has laid bare several critical weaknesses in the current international financial system. Empirical evidence indicates that the rapid growth of international financial transactions & private capital flows to developing countries have contributed to higher investment, faster growth, & rising living standards in some countries. But the liberalization of financial markets -- both domestic & international -- has also been associated with costly economic & political crises in several developing countries, not only those with major economic imbalances but also, through contagion, in countries with a sound economy. Direct controls are needed to reduce the risk of destabilizing capital inflows & outflows as well as international regulatory policies that still allow the benefits of open markets to prevail. Though international action for a new financial architecture is crucial, developing countries must themselves adapt their policies to prevent & better manage financial & currency crises. Adapted from the source document.

The article discusses the usefulness of capital controls against the background of the recent international financial crises. It begins by showing that the free flow of capital is instrumental in achieving an optimal allocation of resources. Then, "legitimate" reasons for restricting the flows of capital are sought. Particular attention is devoted to examining the question as to whether &, if so, how the free flow of capital fuels susceptibility to crises. The author argues that speculative capital movements tend to be a side effect of financial crises while the causes are to be found elsewhere. Finally, it is pointed out that the IMF & its member countries continue to pursue the liberalization of capital movements & that capital controls would contribute little to international peace. 6 References. Adapted from the source document.